But Perhaps The Greatest Difficulty With Which The American Post-
Office Is Burdened Is That "Free Mail Matter" To Which
I have
alluded, for carrying which the post-office claims to earn
140,000l., and for the carriage of which
It might as fairly claim to
earn 1,350,000l., or half the amount of its total expenditure, for I
was informed by a gentleman whose knowledge on the subject could not
be doubted, that the free mail matter so carried equaled in bulk and
weight all that other matter which was not carried free. To such an
extent has the privilege of franking been carried in the States!
All members of both Houses frank what they please - for in effect the
privilege is stretched to that extent. All Presidents of the Union,
past and present, can frank, as also, all Vice-Presidents, past and
present; and there is a special act, enabling the widow of President
Polk to frank. Why it is that widows of other Presidents do not
agitate on the matter, I cannot understand. And all the Secretaries
of State can frank; and ever so many other public officers. There
is no limit in number to the letters so franked, and the nuisance
has extended itself to so huge a size that members of Congress, in
giving franks, cannot write the franks themselves. It is illegal
for them to depute to others the privilege of signing their names
for this purpose, but it is known at the post-office that it is
done.
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